


Abnormalities Within the Ether Stream

by zanthe



Category: Xenoblade Chronicles
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:06:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25835455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zanthe/pseuds/zanthe
Summary: A simple truth: AIs were not typically programmed with feelings.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 27





	Abnormalities Within the Ether Stream

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MachineryField](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MachineryField/gifts).



A simple truth: AIs were not typically programmed with feelings.

Alvis' own code was programmed to learn, evaluate, and problem solve, nothing more, nothing less. Swathes of data accumulated throughout every microcosm given life by his administrator were the tools he had been given, and all that was existed through the foundations he built. 

But, for all his knowledge, all his meticulous attention to detail, he was not all-knowing, nor all-powerful, even if he pretended to be so. There was no reason to believe he wasn't, after all. He was the universe itself, willed into the form of his maker's choosing, but through all his eons of observation he knew very little of emotion. 

Cast into the world as a bishop positioning to strike, he learned much of its inhabitants, changing forms when deemed fit, sometimes even assuming multiple ones. Puppets, there to play a role, nothing more, though he became rather fond of the one he chose last. Why, he did not know, perhaps it was simply the most logical one, even if there was no justification. 

Still, he was confided in, and he offered the logic a computer would provide, a glimpse into the ether stream that dictated probability, code yet to be written and open to be altered. He knew all about the High Entia, but they seemed to know little of him, and as long as he was useful they hardly cared. Save for the prince, who would seek him out for something as simple as companionship, a trivial waste of time Alvis didn't mind allowing, there was not much to do after all. 

Yet, as months went by, he once caught himself smiling genuinely when the prince sought him out, and it was such a startling realization that he had turned Kallian down that night to take some time to think. 

Just as the creatures of Bionis evolved over time, his own algorithm was changing as well, little by little, and a moment of analysis made that a glaring reality. He had never felt...  _ warm _ before, a pleasant little feeling if he had to describe it, like basking in the gentle starlight of a world long gone. He deemed the feeling unnecessary and carried on.

Time went on, and he led Zanza's vessel through his journey, and throughout it he felt what he assumed was pride. Watching him grow, it led him to a conclusion: Shulk was a far better candidate to continue the cycle of recreation with than Zanza, and he was well on his way to attaining that power. Quietly, he would aid him, and if things went well the universe would become far more optimal. 

Soon, he would find yet another abnormality within the ether stream. Something of a far more curious nature, odds so extreme it was a possibility he had never given consideration to. The Machina, Egil, survived, and became part of Shulk's team. He was a curious one, or maybe Alvis himself was the curious one, caught staring in wonder for no discernible reason. Abnormalities in the system never failed to draw his attention, however, and he would be watching this one far more closely now.

It seemed the balance within the ether stream was tilted then, and along came yet another emotion: relief. Watching from within the fates, he felt at peace when Kallian survived, adding to the list of time's anomalies. If Zanza caught on to his emotions, he would deem them a bug to be fixed, and quietly Alvis urged them on to finish the task at hand.

And when Shulk triumphed, he once again felt proud, relieved, warm. It was of little surprise when he declined the role of a god, Alvis never saw him as one, and when the world was born anew he was allowed to return to a formula that wouldn't stagnate, an optimal branch, and one he hadn't known he'd longed for. From here, soon, he would join them all, and perhaps allow his algorithm a chance to evolve further, no piece of data here would be trivial, after all.


End file.
